A Ventura County man entered a guilty plea to criminal charges stemming from the killing of a mountain lion which was part of a National Park Service research study. Ventura County prosecutors say Alfredo Gonzales of Simi Valley was sentenced to 30 days in jail, 30 days in a work release program, and ordered to do 240 hours of community service at an animal shelter.
P-38 was a male mountain lion which mainly lived in the Santa Susana Mountains. It was captured, and a GPS tracking device was added to its collar in 2015. Park Service biologists received signals from the device indicating that P-38 might have died. They determined the big cat had been shot in the head.
Mountain lions are protected mammals, and killing them without a permit is illegal.
